|b{Heiligenlegenden;_Legende_der_heiligen_Dorothea.}
|b{Lambeth_432,_fol._90.}
|b{ed._Horstmann,_C.,_Prosalegenden._Anglia_3_(1880).}
|b{pp._325-328}



|p325


|rIII._S._Dorothea.
|r[From_MS._Lamb.432,_fol._90.]

     |r<b> The right gloriouse virgyn seint Dorothee come downe of the
     noble blode off the senatours of Rome. Hir ffadir hight Dorotheo,
     and her modir hight Theodera. In that tyme persecucion of crystene
     peple was passing grete in the londe of Romaynis. Wherfore this
 |r5 blessid Dorotheo, dispising the ydolis, forsoke Rome and all his
     pocessiounys, that is to say wyffis, castellic, and housis, and saylid
     with his wyf Theodera and with his II doughteris, that hight
     Cristyne and Callestyne, till thay come to the Realme of Capodose
     and in the cite of Sesaream. Where-in thay dwelling brought fforthe
|r10 a doughter, of whose lyff we entend to speke now by the grace of
     god. Whenne this child was bore, she was preuely bapti¨ed in the
     maner of cristen peaple of an holy man, byshop Appollinarye, and
     put to her a name of the ffader name and the moder and namyd
     her Dorothea. // And she anone ffulfillid with the holy goest, taught
|r15 with vertu and holy discipline, and she was wonderly ffayre above
     all the maydennys of the regeone, dispising the worlde with all his
     vanyteis in a fferuent love of god with pouerte, and ffull of meke_nesse
     and of charite. // The ffende not susteynyng here chastite ffor
     envy that he had to hirre goddnesse, sett a-ffyre in her love
|r20 ffabricion, provoest of that lond. The whicche the ffende styrid so
     besely with vnforsing of vnclene luffe to this virgyne seint Dorothea,
     that he sent for herre; // behoting here tresoure and all maner of
     goddis withouten noumbre, and for to take her as for his wyf with_out
     any determynacion. This hering, blessid Dorothea dispising
|r25 all sleame and mukke and worldly richesse, and without any drede
     she knowlegid her lyff openly, that she was frely and truly maried



|p326


     to oure lord Jhesu Crist. // The whicche ffabricius hering was all
     sett on-ffyre in woddnesse, comaunding anone that she be put in a
     tonne of brennyng oyle. And she, with the helpe of her spouse
     Jhesu Cryste, abode ther-in without any dissease, Joying her ther_in,
 |r5 as thoughe she had bene anoyntid with a preciouse oynement of
     bawme. Wherfore many of the paynymis, seyng this grete myracle,
     were conuertid to god. But verreyly, this tyraunt bilievid that she
     didde all this by wychcrafte, and comaunded her to be reclusid in
     presone IX dayes without mete or drinke. But she was norishid
|r10 and ffedde with gloriouse angelis: so that, when she come out of
     the presone and was brought forthe byfore the Juge, she apperid
     more ffayrere thane euer she was byffore. Wherfore all the peple
     wonderd that she myght be so ffayre, and so long kept without
     mete or drinke. // Than said the Juge to hirre: `but yf thou worship
|r15 my goddis, thou shalt not escape the turnament of če Jebett'. And
     she answerid: `sadly I worship onely god, and not feendis'. And
     she ffell downe ffull strayte to the erthe, lyfting up her Ihen vn_to
     heuen, and prayed god how that he wold graunt and shewe his
     grete myght howe that he is only god, and none other ther besyde
|r20 hyme. Than ffabricius arose up ffrom his pilloire and sett his
     ydollis ther-on. And in-contynent a gret multitude of angellis
     comyng with grete myght threwe downe the Idolis, so that no part
     of the pilloure myght be ffounde. And thay herd the voyse of
     ffendis thoroughe the erthe crying: // `O Dorothea, why doest thou
|r25 distroy us and turment us?' And ffor this myracle many thous_antis
     of paynymmys were openly conuertid to oure lord Jhesu Crist
     and enterid in to the crowne of martyris. / And than this holy
     virgyne was hangid apone a Jebbet, here ffete upward, and all her
     boly bodi all to drawen with hokis of yryne; she was beten with
|r30 roddis and scourgis, and after sett hote ffyre-brondis to her
     tendyr brestis, and she, halffe dede, was reclusid ageyne in to pres_oune
     till the morne. The morow day ffolowing she was brought
     fforthe all hole without spott or any dissease. Where-of the Juge
     wondred gretly and said to her: `O thou ffayre maid, yett thou
|r35 shalt turne ageyne, ffor thou art chasti¨ed ynoughe'. // And thane
     he sent to hirre two of her susters, Crysteane and Callestyne, the
     whicche for drede of deth were turnyd away ffrome Crist Jhesu:
     and thay shuld laboure to her suster Dorothea ffor to withdrawe her
     frome the ffeythe. Than blessid Dorothea spak to her susteris so
|r40 swetly and so graciously, that she toke ffrome theme all the blynd_nesse
     of her hertis and conuertid theme ffully to god. Knowing
     this ffabricius by her two susters, he bound her bakkis to gedir
     and threwe theme bothe in grete ffyre. And than he said to
     Dorothea: `how long wilt thou drawe us long with thy whicche_crafte?
|r45 othir do sacreffice and lyffe, or ellis resayue the sentence
     of thyne hede smyttene of'. And she answerid with a gladde chere:



|p327


     `what-euer thou wilt, y am redy to suffre for my lord Jhesu Christ,
     my spouse, in whose gardeyne ffull of delytis I haue gaderid rosie
     and appelis'. Hering this the tyraunt, trembling for anger with_in
     him-selffe, comaundid that her ffayre vysage shuld be bete with
 |r5 stavis, and so, that ther shuld no-thing apere no maner ffeture in
     Her vysage, and so kept on to the morow. // The day following she
     was brought ffully curid and made hole and full of beaute by her
     trusty spouse and savioure, ffor whose worship and luff she toke
     apone her this hard and travellous battayle. And then he gaff the
|r10 sentence that her hede shuld be smyttene off. And she was ledde
     without the towne-wallis of the cite. Moreovir Theophilus, the grete
     notarye of that Realme, sawe and bihilde these thingis: and, as in
     scorne, he prayed her that she wold shewe him rosis and appellis
     of the gardeyne of her spouse, and gretly he prayed her therof.
|r15 The which prayer she granutid him, not-withstonding that tyme
     was right grete cold, bothe ffrost and snowe. And when she come
     to the place of her martirdom, she prayed to oure lorde ffor all tho
     that in worship of her name hallowithe her passioune, that thay be
     kept in every tribulacion, and specially to be delyuerid ffrome the
|r20 shame of pouerte and ffals fame, and in thayre end that thay may
     haue verray contricion and remissione of all her synnys; // and
     wommene with child, that callid to hir name ffor thayre helpe, that
     thay may ffynde comfort and proffitte in her sorowis and tribula_cionis;
     // also she prayed that, where her lyff were writtyne in ony place
|r25 or house, that hit myght be kepte frome all maner of parellis, of
     thunder, lightenyng or any other myschaunce, and ffrome the parellis
     of thevis and all sodene dethis, and that thay shall resseyue the
     holy sacrament at her ende ffor herre souerayne diffence agaynys
     all goestly parellis. // And also sone as she had made her prayer,
|r30 ther come a voyse frome heuen, and said to hirre: `cum, my desyrid
     spouse! ffor all that ye askid and prayid ffor, hit is grauntid yow,
     and thay that ye pray ffor, shalbe savid'. / Than this blessid virgine
     bowid her hede on-to the stroke of če swerd: and there apperid a
     ffayre child, clothid in purpur, barffote, with cryspe here, whose
|r35  clothis were all springelid with bright sterris; bering in his hand a
     litill panyere whith thre rosis and thre appellis, and he proferid
     theme to the virgyne. To whome the blissid virgyne Dorothea said:
     `I pray yow; my lord, that ye will bere heme to Theophile, the
     scrybe'. And anone she resayuyd the martirdome by ffabrrcione
|r40 preffecte vnder Dyoclttsyone and to Maxemyane Emperoure of Rome,
     CCIxxxVIII yere of oure lord god. // Theophile than stonding in the
     pallice of the precedent, this child append to hyme and toke hyme
     this baskett, saying to him here thus: `these rosis and appellis my
     suster sendith to the frome paradyse of her spouse' and anone the



|p328


     the child vanyshid away. Than all ffor wondred Teophile brake
     out in praysing Jhesu Crist, God of Dorothea, `that in that tyme
     of so grete colde as ther was than in ffebruarij, that the lond was
     ouer-covirde with ffrost and snowe and no grene appering in noone
 |r5 (place, hath sent this); truly, truly, he that hathe sent this is of
     grete power, of whome the name be blissid withouten end, amen.
     And so by his preching and affermyng all that cite was conuertid
     to oure lord Jhesus Crist. Perseyuyng this the tyrannt, he turmentid
     Teophile, the scribe, with many moo cruell maneres of turmentours
|r10 than Dorothea resayuyd, and at the last be was cutt in smale pecis
     and comaundid to be cast to wilde beestis and byrdis, to be deuourid.
     But ffirst he resayuyd baptyme and the holy sacrament of oure
     lordis bodye: and so ffolowing the blissid virgyne Dorothea he
     come to Crist that gloryfied his sayntis, and be gloreffied in heme,
|r15 the consubstanciall and coeternall with the ffader and the holy
     goest, lyvith and reynyth god by all the worldis of worldis Iblessid
     amen.